ACPEN: The Commonsense Approach to Auditing for Fraud

Overview

As reported by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners 2024 Report to the Nations on Occupational Fraud and Abuse, organizations lose an average of 5% of their revenues to fraud. Yet, the report disclosed that only 3% of all frauds are detected by the external auditor. However, the thing that management depends on the detect fraud is the external audit.

To detect fraud an auditor must: Know what fraud looks like; be able to think like a thief; always maintain healthy professional skepticism; be able to recognize the risk of fraud; and build your audit program to look for fraud. Auditing For Fraud addresses each of these areas as well as several others. 
 
During this presentation, I will discuss how to distinguish between an error and a fraud; how to recognize the indicators of fraud; develop and refine a hypothec as to how a fraud was committed; who steals (the basic honest person) and why and lastly; how to prove intent. If you cannot prove intent, all you have is a dumb mistake!

Chances are that after this presentation, you will never look at an audit the same way you do now.

Highlights

• Occupational Fraud
• Professional Skepticism
• Fraud Indicators
• Error vs. Fraud
• Fraud Risk
• Fraud Hypothesis Development
• Fraud Intent

Prerequisites

None

Designed For

External and Internal Auditors, Fraud Examiners

Objectives

• Explain the prevalence and impact of occupational fraud in organizations.
• Differentiate between an error and fraudulent activity in financial records and transactions.
• Recognize common indicators and risk factors of fraud during an audit.
• Apply professional skepticism and a fraud-focused mindset when conducting audits.
• Develop and refine hypotheses about how a fraud may have been committed.
• Identify common perpetrator profiles and motivations behind occupational fraud.
• Explain the importance of proving intent when determining whether fraud has occurred.Explain how asset misappropriation occurs within organizations.

Preparation

None